The Stuff

Adult Swim is featuring another live action TV show. This time it’s Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace, a British comedy that spoofs hospital and horror shows. This show doesn’t seem to be as bad as other live action shows they’ve featured lately, probably because Adult Swim didn’t produce it. Darkplace comes from Great Britain, features Matt Berry (from the Mighty Boosh and the IT Crowd) and Richard Ayoade (IT Crowd), and is rated a 9.4 out of 10 on IMDB. The lead character is played by Matthew Holness, a chubby Bam Margera look alike. It’s interesting to note that comedian Carlos Mencia’s birth name was Ned Holness: I wonder if they are related; two brothers with a different mother.

Fans of Animation, whether they are Japanimation fans or fans of the low-tech Flash stuff, will probably vomit at the notion of more live action on Adult Swim and Cartoon Network. Cartoon fans are right for the most part, but this time they’re less right.

The big question: is Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace boring? The concept is amusing, and the actors are certainly quality stock. There’s plenty of gags and spot-on 1980’s parody. Hmmm… I’m going to call Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace “situationally not boring”. If you’re alone and in a bad mood with lots of crap on your mind, you’ll likely acknowledge that the show is clever, but ultimately toggle between it and checking email or some web site where you think you’ll meet women but never will… in that case it is boring. If you’re watching TV drunk or just giddy on life with a bunch of friends, then Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace is funny — LOL funny. So, depending on the situation, Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace is definitely not boring (especially if you’re in your 30s and get the 80’s jokes).